April 17 – The Next Step
Publishing
“If your stuff isn’t ready for a real publisher, then it’s not ready to be published. Keep working at your craft until what you write is ready for real publication. There are exceptions, but not enough to be mathematically significant. Trust me.
“Yes. There are exceptions. And good reasons to self-publish. There is no shame in being self-published if you’re great: Mark Twain and Ernest Hemingway were self-published at first…
“So there are good self-published books. Some are great and positively affect the lives of millions. Most books in this category are ahead of their time. Publishers don’t ‘get’ them yet. …
“The exception that make you self-publish shouldn’t be based on impatience. You will end up publishing junk at worst, and (if you don’t mind me mincing some metaphors) unpolished diamonds in the rough that no one will wade through to find the gold at best….
“A cogent argument can be made for self-publishing. There is a good chance that self-publishing my novel helped me, directly or indirectly, to get other book deals. Writing is a long, strange trip. It really is a lifelong journey. I mean, my third book just came out, and it’s still trickling out to the public. I’m just starting to get some e-mails and reviews. Books have a long life. It’s not overnight like with other stuff.
“Don’t panic. Try to have less desperation, more inspiration, and more determination, and work steady over a long timeline.” pp. 266-268 (1)
Cost and Expectations
“I had my printer make 1,000 copies of my 304-page novel. It looked good, looked like a real book, and cost about 4,000 dollars. It took me four years to get rid of the books. I sold about half (for between 5 and 13 dollars each) and gave away the rest or traded them for favors or other people’s art. (Alternately, my first book with a major publisher, $30 Film School, has sold 8,000 copies, at 30 bulks a pop, in eight months.)
“I sent copies of my novel out to magazines. They took up to a year to get reviewed. $30 Film School started getting reviewed a month after it came out. Part of this is that it’s easier to grok the idea of a tech book without reading the wholes thing. Also, people take stuff more seriously when it comes from a major publisher.” P276 (1)
no-budget self-publishing – chapbooks (made at home), zines (stands for magazine for fantics), E-zines ( online zines), Blogs (web log – cross between diary and an e-zine done by one person)
“How Scams Work
“Publishers: They’re called subsidy, or “vanity” publishers. They recruit authors through display ads in writer’s magazines, spam sent to online newsgroups or even though unsolicited letters and brochures sent by regular mail. ‘ATTENTION: WRITERS WANTED’ they trumpet. When you respond with a query or manuscript, you receive a letter awash with praise for you writing and chock full of promises of success and exaggerated claims of all the wonderful thing the publisher will do for your manuscript, from printing to promotion. Then when the contract comes, you notice the clause that states how much your manuscript, from printing to promotion. Then when the contract comes, you notice the clause that states how much YOU are expected to contribute, usually a significant sum of money. For this you will receive X number of books out of X number printed, your book will be widely distributed and promoted and you will all live happily ever after.
“Don’t bet on it. These kinds of publishers make profits from the fees they charge writers, not from sales of the books they produce. The finished books are often of dubious quality, there’s actually little or no promotional effort expended by the publisher at all and you’ll be hard pressed to find your book in major bookstores (or even small ones). The publisher may not even print as many total books as promised. Without sales there are no royalties, and the hoodwinked writer ends up with little to show for a considerable investment except stacks of unsold books.
“Literary agents and book doctors: Shady agents recruit writers much as subsidy publishers do-through ads, online spam and direct mail. When you submit a manuscript, the agent responds that the work isn’t up to standard and could use some editing. And, see, publishers no longer take the time and trouble to edit manuscripts but expect polished, ready-to-print work. But don’t despair! The agent gives you the name of an excellent book doctor who understands just what that agent, and today’s publisher, are looking for.
“For an inflated fee, the book doctor works his ‘magic’ on your manuscript. You resubmit the work to the agent, but wouldn’t you know it? In the meantime the market for your book has changed, or the agent represents an entirely different genre of writing, or … Well, the end of the story is you wind up with an unpublished manuscript that wasn’t even particularly well ‘doctored,’ you have no representation in the marketplace and you’re out a big chuck of change.
“Anthologies: You see an ad calling for poets or announcing a competition that offers thousands of dollars in cash prizes. You submit a poem and, lo and behold, you receive a heartening letter: Your poem didn’t win but it’s so good it’s been chosen for inclusion in a special anthology of only the best poems submitted. What a feather in your cap! Now, you don’t have to purchase an anthology if you don’t want to; but should you wish to see your poem among this treasure trove of literary gems, it will cost you only $25 (or whatever –could be more). Deluxe hardbound edition, mind you. Won’t you be proud to show it to your family and friends? Why, they’ll probably want to buy copies for themselves.
“When you receive this grand volume you may be disappointed in the quality of the other poems ‘chosen’ to appear in this exclusive publication. Actually, everyone who entered was invited to be published, and you basically paid cash to see your poem appear in a book of no literary merit whatsoever.
“These are the most common scams out there, although enterprising con artists are devising new ones all the time (modern technology, from ‘display’ sites on the Internet to print-on-demand schemes, have opened up lots of fresh possibilities for being ripped off)
“How do you protect yourself? It’s important to learn the warning sings common to most publishing scams. Spotting even one of these danger signals should be enough to make you pause and ask some appropriate questions.
“Here’s what to watch for:”
Request for money
Referral to a specific agent, publisher or book doctor
Phrases like ‘joint venture agreement’, ‘author’s contribution’ and ‘co-parnership’
Extravagant praise or unrealistic promises
Vagueness about details
Broad, inaccurate statements about the publishing industry
Display ads for agents, publishers, contests and anthologies
“These are just a few of the basic tip-offs to scams that prey on writers. When searching for an agent, publisher or book doctor, apply the same common sense that you would to finding a good mechanic, caterer or carpenter. Request a resume and references. Check with the Better Business Bureau. Talk to clients past and present. Search the Internet. You can even generate a professional background check (fees for this vary, so be careful here, too).
“Writers serious about their craft should never be so impatient for publication that they rush into dubious business arrangements. Unscrupulous publishers, agents and book doctors understand the vulnerability of unpublished authors who feel anxious-desperate, even-about ever seeing their work in print.
“If you’re good enough to be published, you’re good enough to be the payee rather than the payer. On the other hand, if you really are not ready for publication, paying someone to rush things along isn’t going to earn you the reputation and success you desire. So put away your checkbook and credit cards and dig out your manuscript. Concentrate your energies into making your writing the best it can be. If you work deserves an audience it will find one, without the process draining your bank account. pp 101-103 (2)
1. Dean, Michael W. $30 Writing School. Thomson Course Technology. 2004.
2. Bowling, Anne Editor. 2001 Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market. Writer’s Digest Books. 2001.
